In the past we have run rants by Chris Hedges, but this one is more bleak and dire than anything we have previously posted…
“There are no constraints left to halt America’s slide into a totalitarian capitalism. Electoral politics are a sham. The media have been debased and defanged by corporate owners. The working class has been impoverished and is now being plunged into profound despair. The legal system has been corrupted to serve corporate interests. Popular institutions, from labor unions to political parties, have been destroyed or emasculated by corporate power. And any form of protest, no matter how tepid, is blocked by an internal security apparatus that is starting to rival that of the East German secret police. The mounting anger and hatred, coursing through the bloodstream of the body politic, make violence and counter-violence inevitable. Brace yourself. The American empire is over. And the descent is going to be horrifying.
Those singled out as internal enemies will include people of color, immigrants, gays, intellectuals, feminists, Jews, Muslims, union leaders and those defined as “liberals.” They will be condemned as anti-American and blamed for our decline. The economic collapse, which remains mysterious and enigmatic to most Americans, will be pinned by demagogues and hatemongers on these hapless scapegoats. And the random acts of violence, which are already leaping up around the fringes of American society, will justify harsh measures of internal control that will snuff out the final vestiges of our democracy. The corporate forces that destroyed the country will use the information systems they control to mask their culpability. The old game of blaming the weak and the marginal, a staple of despotic regimes, will empower the dark undercurrents of sadism and violence within American society and deflect attention from the corporate vampires that have drained the blood of the country.” Click here for the rest
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The secret word is Carnage
And yet...
ReplyDeleteCorporations need us more than we need them. If we don't buy their stuff, they have no money. If they have no money, they have no power.
We have the power. Not them.
If everyone stopped buying at Walmart tomorrow? (And we all could stop because we don't *need* Walmart.)
But if we all stopped buying at Walmart until they committed to carry only goods made in USA? They'd be forced to do it. And right soon. Then the rest? They'd follow suit.
Revolution! Stop buying from Walmart and Costco. Reuse, buy used, buy American. Buy from farmers and co-ops.
Or be a puss whining about all the ways it "just can't work." Boo hoo hoo.
Suck it up, doom and gloomers. The times they are a'changing. Quit being a spectator and get in here.
Yes, because somehow if you stop buying from Walmart and Costco, the volume of economic wealth they've accumulated is going to suddenly vanish...
ReplyDeleteThe bunker compound and private military force the Waltons own are just going to cease to exist.
Also, we're fucking kidding ourselves if we think that the issue of controlled press is more important than where we're buying cheap HDTVs! This controlled press issue is a load of shit, I mean, sure, the free press is usually destroyed just before martial law is imposed and things really start to sour, but so what? If we buy stuff from a local mom and pop shop things will change!
Bread and games... that's all you're talking about when you talk about walmart and costco.
You want to talk about where the power is, about totalitarian capitalism... check the fucking bills and ask who owns the utilities and charges for that distribution. Walmart doesn't mean shit, Costco isn't keeping you in the dark if you don't have enough money for electricity. They aren't shutting off the gas and making you huddle for warmth.
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Chris Hedges is descending into derangement with his apocalyptic predictions. There's much to despair of, but his predictions of pogroms against liberals, gays, etc. are truly silly.
ReplyDelete"Why not us?" Because we fucking can't is why. Not "won't" - can't. Some folks just can't live in a bullshit illusion - and ya just have to look around to see what becomes of those who try.
ReplyDeleteBlood always runs a little cold when that "Buy American" creeps in there. Fly the flag, deport the aliens, build the walls.
ReplyDeleteWhat you gonna buy? Arms, financial "services" ?
Good luck with the coke not the coffee.
(Though do like the bit where you add the Mentos)
Does this make you sad, Mick? People fight harder for corporations than they do for their own lives.
ReplyDeleteWar is over if we want it? Nah, Democracy is over.
That is all.
I don't think I'd get too doom and gloomy just yet.
ReplyDeleteThere will always be limp defeatists who offer no alternative solutions. People like "anonymous" whining about why we should do nothing. "The Walton's private military force?" :) Uh huh.
These folks are worth a chuckle. But that's all.
Walmart did change the way American companies manufacture. The retail giant's business practices drove jobs overseas. This isn't news. It's long been well covered. So since we gotta start somewhere, these big box retailers are as good a place as any to influence American businesses.
Beats impotently writing shrill posts...
And on that note, Universal Alien sounds a little, well...nutty. He/she equates buying American with "deport the aliens, build the walls?"
Um. Yeah. :) Easy there, tiger...
Seems best to avoid the overly emotional types. Who never seem to offer ideas or solutions...
So maybe just do what you can to make changes that strengthen your local community.
Which probably does mean keep money local. And "starve out" big box stores and their global supply chain who consolidate wealth in the hands of a few by exploiting jobs overseas done by slave labor.
Just keep things practical. Common sense. (And it's okay to have a good laugh at the emo posts... :)
Nah, what the fuck do you call the people with machine guns, assault rifles & body armor, the people with sidearms in formal security posts at Walton's bunker compound besides a private military force? A bunch of good ole boys taking 9 to 5 out for cosplay with guns in round the clock shifts every-fucking-day?
ReplyDeleteAs well, I didn't suggest you do nothing. I'd suggested you check your bills & think about a larger picture.
There are more important issues than bread & games policy at a mega-retail chain... rather the bread & circuses distraction poised to confuse the weak minded from reality, where the concept of support for local community business isn't new. I suggest a focus on the control, distribution & consumption of vital energy utilities. The conglomerate retailers & the disgruntled consumers both rely on these things & would cease to function without them.
The sheer volume of effort that has gone into making alternative energy in the home & small busines look expensive & seem beyond ordinary people is fucking absurd... Instead of talking about walmart, talk about the simplicity of a windmill & how just about anybody could make a small one... the fact that it could be used to generate electricity, it might actually inspire somebody to do more than talk. Say, maybe there is an energy efficient way that a home owners association can save money & impact a very small local community if they use windmills for certain level of energy consumption... help make it more independent & self sustainable. But hell, this is just an emo post from a limp defeatist, only worth a chuckle. Walmart, that's where the fucking revolution is going to happen!
Interesting point. How might a community go about installing their own windmill/etc and grid? Or is there a good website you recommend?
ReplyDeleteFor the record, I suspect folks can both install alt.energy devices and still keep their money local and not shop at Walmart. Hit the big corps on two fronts. Right?
p.s. On that note, in addition to the emo, you may find more people hearing your views if you aren't so f*cking myopic.
http://www.builditsolar.com/Projects/Wind/wind.htm
ReplyDeleteThere's a mass of relevant info & source material on DIY wind power at the link above. As to as how to go about things, one step at a time, it isn't exactly an over night process.
Wind power isn't the only alternative out there, to really make an impact people need to quit gasoline altogether. That's where I suggest manpower as the main source of energy... if you aren't going more than 10 miles, why not bike, skate or just walk? If you have a real journey to make, or are unable to produce enough manpower for the 10 miles radius, it's probably time to look at the other options available to you, presuming any exist.
One question... Why the self censorship? I've never understood the deal with trading out one letter for a symbol, fucking vs f*cking.
Yeah. Fuck that sh*t.
ReplyDeleteVery cool. Thanks! I'm going to sit down with my neighbors and see what we can do.
ReplyDeleteAnd we're still not gong to buy from the big boxes, right. :)
Regarding swearing on the net? Dunno. I just find that, unless it's integral to your argument, it's only noise clouding your point and automatically turning off some folks.
FYI, if you're actually concerned about energy companies, you should never shop at the Walmarts/Targets/Costcos/etc. Never.
ReplyDeleteHow do you think all that stuff made by slaves in China gets to the US? On the solar-power wings of angels?
We could probably push back oil depletion by generations just by buying as much local as possible.
Oh, and to Alien whose "blood runs cold" or whatever when people talk of buying American and US jobs? So you actually prefer 14-year-olds doing slave labor overseas under Sinclairian conditions polluting the air and water versus putting Americans to work? Blech. That ain't "liberal." That's both ignorent and cold hearted.
Ah, Western Earthlings, you bought and sold and polluted as if there was no tomorrow, begat this monster and now you wish to protect yourselves.
ReplyDeleteAutarky is a dangerous road, favored by fascists. Read some history.
Consume less, buy what you need, local if possible.
But I see no frontiers from up here.
And don't forget to eat the rich.
Ah, Western Earthlings, you bought and sold and polluted as if there was no tomorrow, begat this monster and now you wish to protect yourselves.
ReplyDeleteAutarky is a dangerous road, favored by fascists. Read some history.
Consume less, buy what you need, local if possible.
But I see no frontiers from up here.
And don't forget to eat the rich.